


Winding Back from the Burnt Future

by Cerulean_Gaze



Series: Don't Leave the Film Strip Burn Under the Smoldering Light. [1]
Category: Gintama
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Gekijouban Gintama Kanketsu-hen: Yorozuya yo Eien Nare | Be Forever Yorozuya, M/M, i still love y'all through this work tho, it hurts me a lot to write but im a sadist to not let the others suffer
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-27
Updated: 2019-10-27
Packaged: 2021-01-04 12:08:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,811
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21197417
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cerulean_Gaze/pseuds/Cerulean_Gaze
Summary: The world around them seems to pause as Hijikata’s only one had crumbled into his arms. The light of the sunset lost its vibrant into a monochromatic hue, a bright light embracing through their whole being. As if the lonely world being sympathetic to his loss, it only took a matter of seconds for Hijikata to embrace not only the dead body of his love— but also to embrace the emotions his soul screaming for.He cried—cried along with the fleeting soul of the broken future of the world through the outburst of the light.





	Winding Back from the Burnt Future

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Myo_sis](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Myo_sis/gifts).

> A little appreciation gift for Myo_sis for their wonderful works that motivated me to write once again!

_A light—_

_Silver._

_Darkness—_

_Stillness._

_Then strings—_

_Had snapped._

** _「 »– ∞ → 」_ **

He paused.

There was a loud commotion coming above the broken terminal.

Ringing and clashing does the blades in collision— and Hijikata knew well how the sound of each beat patterned from one another. It made him pause from the second floor of the place as he tightened his grip to the stairs’ broken rails, freezing from each familiar beats that awfully reflects one another.

_Like a broken radio playing a single tune on loop._

It was still clear to his mind how _that_ bastard deflected the first hostile blade Hijikata had blown right to him at the very top of the roof back then. It follows the second one where stones clunked against metal— a swish of a fabric against his blade caught Hijikata in a millisecond of satisfaction of landing a hit to the other. Instead of receiving the end of the other’s blade, a finishing blow landed right through his blade that broke the mere metal into pieces— a loud thud of a body replacing the pure sound of his broken blade that Hijikata brought back from the pleasant past to the hellish present he was now chasing to.

_‘Is it him?’_

Hijikata went back on foot as he ran up to the third floor and fourth floor of the terminal, eyes shooting each and every ruined corner for a sign of movement he was looking for. It was very clear that the fight was just distance away from where he is as the blades continued to travel from above. It was the only thing that now rings inside Hijikata’s head as his heart continued to pound along his hurried footsteps, tearing both his head and chest into chaos that he never relived after the five years he lost the only man he had.

_‘Yorozuya— Gintoki.‘_

The disappearance of Sakata Gintoki brought every people he knew into the edge of insanity— especially the other two of Yorozuya Gin-chan that never bothered to leave the rotting planet they were now standing to. Hijikata admit that nothing could match the suffering of longing Kagura and Shinpachi had went through the years— neither do the plague claiming each and every one’s lives could help the current situation.

It was the darkest moment of the time they had went through that even humanity already gave up saving this planet. For the first year the White Plague caught its first victim, millions of people followed the death poll while most of the countries had already fell into a state of incubation. No one ever reached the convalescent of the plague— neither does the Science had found its way to the end.

Although most of the humanity had left the planet as a last resort of survival, it never faltered Kagura and Shinpachi’s choice to stay the home they only have.

So does Hijikata and the others as he watched over the two from the years they reached for him.

He was actually supposed to follow those two up upon hearing a report of them heading towards the ruined terminal with that dick-head amanto leading the way for them— but all he just ended up is to follow the tracks where he lastly saw a glimpse of that dick.

On the first glance, Hijikata really found the familiar-looking creature odd, but the way this alien just reunited Kagura and Shinpachi caught his attention the most. The two of them had already grown distant ever since the funeral was held, and it was out of the question how Hijikata could even meddle between them with such personal situation. Witnessing both of their struggles had made sense to him at the cause of disagreement, though. Still, it became a heavy responsibility for him to handle after all of the things he had offered and given to them during their heavy loss and longing state. Having such similar state does pull another one in sympathy.

It was not only a concern that Hijikata led straight to follow them— but the involvement of the enigmatic being that led the world to its destruction drove him off to their tails without second thoughts.

With the White Plague to be known to exist through that known creature as ‘Enmi’, it was just a common sense to logically corner it with the three of them— if the other amanto was with Kagura and Shinpachi. But from the movement he currently sense from above only signed two beings striking each other with a patterned beat.

Driven by adrenaline of mixed emotions, it was finally the floor where the last resonating sound of the metal rang aloud. Hijikata could hear a nearby voice and laboured breathing of each one. With a sharp beat of his heart, he turned and met the opening site of the broken terminal— painting the skies and the ruined place with burning ochre of the sunset along with the final strike of Chinpo directed to the Enmi.

_He paused._

It was only Chinpo and the Enmi had fought each other— and the sight of the two says neither of the two had won.

Just above the broken conveyor belt Hijikata was currently standing as the other two had managed to throw one below the main luggage area. It was still out of the place of what Hijikata supposed to do, but his chest constricted the urge to follow up the allied amanto from the demonic being of Enmi. Although known to be an enigma for Katsura, seeing the blood trickling down from Chinpo’s wooden sword made Hijikata to question the said statement. The blood is crimson— just like human’s.

And so does the figure of the Enmi covered with enchanted scroll of some sorts.

Without any cues from afar, a roll of the said covering fell from the creature’s head with a white, unruly strand of hair.

The roll then finally fell.

_“You… No, I— I had caused the destruction of our world.”_

_Sakata Gintoki— the said Enmi of the White Plague— spoke clear and distant to the other man._

…

_He paused._

_His breathe does._

_His heart does._

Hijikata couldn’t believe his eyes.

It was all an illusion— his mind wanted to say so, yet his heart said the otherwise.

_It was him! Him!_

With those perpetual curls of his hair and that gentle smile his lips curved into, crimson eyes softened as the way it used to be— it was, without a doubt, Sakata Gintoki.

_But it was the Enmi who brought the end of the world. It was supposed to be._

With those white locks resembling the hair of the victims who died from the plague and those remarkable writings surrounding his ashen skin, eyes dulled by emptiness worse than its former self— it was _absolutely_ the Enmi.

It took a heavy toll on Hijikata’s chest even just to breath with the sight of the man that has been longed enough of everyone. Even the realization of him still living up to this day… with such cross to bear from causing chaos all over the world _alone_— it was all _ridiculous._ It was all ridiculous that it all screamed Gintoki’s will _and_ existence _and_ all of the past actions he always deals with alone. It was just exactly as what that man filled with stupidity and recklessness _always_ does.

_But it has been the polar opposite of throwing his own life into nothing but for everyone who held dear the most._

With every footstep he takes, the concrete creaks from fragility along with his heart. All Hijikata did was to follow every track of this bastard until the end— and it finally end in the sight of him dying alone on that ruined terminal. Everything was still unclear for him, but all he had ever wished is to see that man again— smiling as if nothing had happened to this cursed world they’ve been standing to. Of course, that has to be the way Gintoki would always do after all the chaotic actions he took— but this state is probably an exception. All of those actions are for the sake of every people he cherishes, and this action was driven off out of Hijikata’s sanity at finding every possibility of _why_ all things must ended up like this.

Hijikata paused in front of Gintoki’s body and stared. Before he could realize the wave of edging emotions washing over him, the sight of meeting those crimson eyes of Gintoki at the moment was almost a relief. The other was staring back at him with shock written on his glazed orbs and Hijikata could only kneel in front of the dying man.

_“… You fucking bastard—“_

Hijikata brought his palms close to Gintoki’s cheeks and simply smiled from the softened expression of the other.

_“… Sorry, Oogushi-kun.”_

They were never been a man of sugar-coated words, but those words were enough to both of them to understand what they both feel at the moment. Hijikata just leaned his forehead to Gintoki’s and gently pulled him close to his body, sensing the delicate nuzzle of the other man’s response. It was just like they used to be whenever they had been alone— stripping off the façade they’ve been both wearing in the eyes of the public and showing each other’s raw emotions that fit well together.

The last tint of softened expression of Gintoki then turned into a painful one as a weakened grip had taken Hijikata’s arm. Only a single tear trickled down to his glazed eyes before it finally fell into an adoring gaze that Hijikata’s cerulean eyes has been gazing down deep to his soul.

With a final breath, Gintoki smiled for the last time.

As the grip on his arm had fallen, Hijikata finally came into terms with his detached emotions and tightened his hold to the body of his only man. Tears finally broke through his troubled sight as he choked his loud sob to his throat. He gently held Gintoki’s hand and ran his finger over the wrapped ones while burying his face to the dead’s neck. The last warmth escaping from Gintoki’s body was the final intimation they both have— and savouring each second alone was unbearable enough for Hijikata to let himself to break.

_He paused._

_No— everything paused._

The world around them seems to pause as Hijikata’s only one had crumbled into his arms. The light of the sunset lost its vibrant into a monochromatic hue, a bright light embracing through their whole being. As if the lonely world being sympathetic to his loss, it only took a matter of seconds for Hijikata to embrace not only the dead body of his love— but also to embrace the emotions his soul screaming for.

He cried— _cried along with the fleeting soul of the broken future of the world through the outburst of the light._

**Author's Note:**

> I already wrote this kind of set up from this movie years back then— and I remade it again so it could fit to the series I've been smitten for years already— uwu. The more you watch 'Yorozuya Be Forever'— the more you see golds within it! hnnn, I really sniffing around it again!
> 
> Hope you enjoyed reading this work! Kudos and reviews are really appreciated!


End file.
